Such a position control device is for example disclosed in the German patent publication DE 195 03 145 C2. The fluid power actuator is for example a pneumatic cylinder, the electrical actuator is for example an electrical linear drive, including a lead screw drive or the like. The prior art position control device controls the pneumatic actuator in such a manner that it halts in the vicinity of a target position, i.e. a positioning location. Then the position control device controls the electrical actuator for precision positioning of the force output point. The pneumatic and the electrical actuators are as it were operated in series with one another. The pneumatic actuator serves furthermore as a weight compensation means, which prevent over-loading of the electrical actuator in continuous operation. The two actuators of the known drive furthermore have to perform a respective individual function: the pneumatic actuator serves for coarse positioning and statically holding the force output point, while the electrical actuator serves for fine or precision positioning of the force output point. The electrical actuator compensates for the disadvantages of the pneumatic actuator, for example the less satisfactory accuracy of positioning.
Further disadvantages of a pneumatic drive are for example its elaborate regulation and slow build up of force. On the contrary a pneumatic actuator can provide substantial amounts of force at the expense of only a small heating effect. Although an electrical actuator is quick and precise, on the other hand continuous operation of an electrical actuator leads to substantial heating, this entailing a complex cooling means.